Caracas, Venezuela

Caracas is the largest and capitol city of Venezuela, located on the northern coastline of the country along the Venezuelan Coastal Mountain Range, or, el Cordillera de la Costa.

Spanish conquistadors made an attempt at creating a settlement here in 1562, but it was promptly destroyed by the native people. A few years later, another conquistador, Diego de Losada, successfully founded Santiago de Leon de Caracas in 1567, and it was proclaimed the capitol of the Spanish territory of Venezuela.

Today, Caracas is known for its sprawling cityscape with a cluster of skyscrapers bordered by miles of lower-income housing and slums, as the center of Venezuelan government, its mountain and beach attractions, crime, and for having the highest murder rate per capita in the world.